SNA 2016: UK France Italy and Spain Said to be Interested in Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey

Posted On
Wednesday, 20 January 2016 10:43

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SNA
2016 Show News - V-22 Osprey

SNA
2016: UK France Italy and Spain Said to be Interested in Bell Boeing
V-22 Osprey

By Xavier Vavasseur
A number of European countries have shown interest in the V-22
Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, Navy Recognition has learned
during the Surface Navy Association's (SNA) National Symposium held
last week near Washington DC. Among them are the UK, France, Italy and
Spain.

Artist impression showing a US Navy V-22 in a COD mission. Image: Bell

"We
will brief a number of European countries on the V-22 in February. If
international partners orders can be added to the US order as part of
Multi Year 3, it could drive the V-22 price down" said John
R. Parker, Senior Manager, Tiltrotor Global Sales & Marketing at Boeing.
Navy Recognition understands that the idea is that if these European
countries can pool their orders with the USMC and US Navy upcoming orders,
there is a good chance that the tiltrotor aircraft would become affordable
to them.

"In the case of the UK and France, the interest is coming from the
Navy" according to Parker.The Royal Navy and Marine
Nationale are likely looking for an aircraft to conduct Carrier Onboard
Delivery (COD) missions. The UK Navy is set to commissions two new aircraft
carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08) in 2017 and HMS Prince
of Wales (R09) in 2020.The French Navy operates one nuclear-powered
aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, but doesn't have COD
aircraft.Back in June 2011 two US Navy C-2A(R) Greyhounds from
VRC-40 conducted COD missions for the French aircraft carrier operating
in the Mediterranean Sea during the NATO intervention in Libya.

Contacted by Navy Recognition, a public affairs officer
from Naval Air Systems Command (managing the V-22 program) said in an
email: "There is an upcoming trip to Europe for Government to
Government discussions. However, at this point, there are no details which
can be released."

As we reported
during Sea Air Space 2015, the US Navy is set to procure 48 Ospreys
for Sea Based Logistics (including COD), Personnel recovery (including
SAR) and Special warfare (with US Navy Seals) missions.The US
Navy is studying options to increase the range of the legacy V-22. The
likely solution will be to increase the size of the external sponsons
to fit more fuel inside. This would be the only physical difference with
legacy V-22. The official Navy designation has yet to be selected.

USMC
MV-22 Osprey have crossed deck on several occasions with European navies
flat tops as can be seen in the above pictures. As we reported
last year, the French Navy went a step further by conducting a
thorough qualification campaign over two years to make USMC MV-22s fully
interoperable with the Mistral class LHD. Ospreys are now fully qualified
for operational missions to and from the Mistral class.

Ospreys however can not fit in the hangar of the Mistral class (let alone
on the elevator). It is the same for HMS Ocean and the Cavour
pictured above. It does fit inside the Spanish Navy Juan Carlos I
however as recently demonstrated. It is very likely however that the fit
inside the hangar bay of Queen Elizabeth class carriers and of
the Charles de Gaulle. In the case of the French aircraft carrier
we should soon find out: The French Navy Naval Aviation Practical Experimentation
Center (CEPA) already announced last year that V-22 will be tested onboard
the CVN following the successful tests with the Mistral class LHDs.

Last but not least, Navy Recognition learned that there will
likely be a V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft on the static display at both
Farnborough airshow in July in the UK and Euronaval defense show in Paris
in October.